Inacatastrophic miscalculation that exposes his continuedattachmenttofailure, California Gov. GavinNewsomvetoedAssemblyBill255onOct. 1. It wasabipartisan measure designedtoexpandaccesstorecovery housing forhomelessindividuals struggling with substance use disorders.Hisvetocomesatatime when Californiashomelesscan leastafford more failure.AB 255,authored byAssembly member Matt Haney, would haveallowed upto10%ofstatehomelessness fundstosupportabstinence-based recovery housing.These programs integrate shelter with sobriety requirements,accountabilityand supportive services thathelppeople reclaim stability.Newsomdismissedthebillas "unnecessary," insisting that current guidelinesalready permit sober housingand warningagainst "duplicative" categories.His reasoning rings hollow.WHY PROGRESSIVES FAIL HOMELESS AMERICANS AND ATTACK EFFECTIVE ALTERNATIVESCalifornia mimickedthefederal governments 2013 "Housing First" mandate and its promisetoendhomelessness inadecade.In 2016, California becametheonly statetoenshrine Housing First statewide, meaning thatall state-fundedhomelessprograms conformtotheapproachofproviding life-long housing subsidies without conditions suchas sobriety, treatment or workever.Despitea300% increase in federal spending since 2013 andanadditional300% increase in state spending homelessness has exploded. Itsup 35% nationallyand 40% in California.These statisticsarentabstract figures;theyare lives unraveling underagovernor who refusestolook inthemirrorandadmit that Californias rigid mandate has failed.LEFTIST LAWMAKERS WANT TO MAKE HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS A NATIONWIDE CRISISAttheheartofthefailure isarefusaltorecognize who weare serving.Roughly 80%ofthehomelesssuffer fromthediseasesofmental illnessand/oraddiction. Manyalso struggle withanosognosia abrain-based condition that results inadeficitofself-awareness, meaningthey dont realize how sicktheyare.And thats what makes Housing Firsts requirementofvoluntaryservice engagement tragically unworkable.A14-year Boston studymakes this clear: Nearly halfofthehoused individuals died within five years,andonly 36% remained housedafter year five.Recovery housing thekindAB 255 soughttoexpand offers something fundamentally different: community,accountabilityand hope.CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINIONThose tryingtoget sober standthebest chanceofdoing so when housedalongside others striving forthesame goal. Isolation in permanent housing without sobriety requirements flies inthefaceofwhat frontline providers know works. By surrounding people with peers whoarealso pursuing recovery,and by building environments where sobriety is non-negotiable, recovery housing gives peopleareal path forward toward stability, employmentand independence.Noneofthemen, women or children living in tents or under bridgesaspiredtothis life. Manyarrived here through trauma,addiction, mental illnessand/or generational poverty.ByvetoingAB 255 forthesecond year inarow,Newsomchose ideology over compassion, oppression over prosperity. Insteadofoffering pathwaystodignityand restoration, he consigns thosetoo sicktochoose forthemselvestotheir fate;theyre lefttocontinuetocomeapartonthestreets or languish in low-barrier, chaos-ridden shelters whilethey wait for permanent housing that rarely comes.California is hometoapproximately 30%ofthenationshomelesspopulationand nearly halfofits unshelteredhomelessness. Meeting this crisis requires couragetoinnovate, belief in recoveryand respect for human potential.AB 255 wasabalanced, modest step that could have complemented Housing First while giving desperate peoplethechancetoheal.Disguisedasadministrative prudence,NewsomsvetoofAB 255 was, in reality,aprofound moral failure. Shameonhim for standing inthewayofrecovery, restorationand hope.CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM MICHELE STEEB